Test drive: 2013 Mustang is still delightfully untamed

Saturday

Aug 3, 2013 at 12:01 AM

A decade ago, as Ford engineers prepared the next-generation Mustang, they stared down an inescapable truth: the best Mustangs were built in the 1960s. So they set out to build a brand-new 1968 Mustang...

By Brian Thevenot

A decade ago, as Ford engineers prepared the next-generation Mustang, they stared down an inescapable truth: the best Mustangs were built in the 1960s.

So they set out to build a brand-new 1968 Mustang fastback, wrapping modern technology in retro sheet metal.

Itís clear now that it worked brilliantly, setting off an unlikely second coming of the muscle car era.

The 2013 Mustang GT we tested recently, a drag-strip beast that could smoke most anything from the í60s, may be among the last of the retro breed. With the Mustangís 50th anniversary approaching next year, the engineers in Dearborn, Mich., are again feverishly designing the next-generation Mustang.

However wonderful the next Mustang may be, it will be a shame to see this one pass into history.(Note to Ford: DO NOT bring back the Mustang II.)

A week in the old-school cockpit of the latest GT confirms that its ride, handling and shifting are an upgrade over both ancient and recent Mustangs, which have always been a bit crude ó endearingly so.

Ford has also pulled off a subtle but substantial evolution of its retro design. A mid-cycle refresh in 2010 added a sharpened belt line and a rear end pinched in on both sides. For 2013, Ford added a more prominent front grille and other tweaks. The updates somehow made the car look simultaneously less dated and more like the old car.

But only one option really matters on this car: the 302-cubic-inch, 5.0-liter V-8, a direct descendant of the first 302 small-block introduced in the 1968 Mustang, now with a ludicrous 420 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque. The first retro Mustang GT, a 2005 model, was impressive enough with 300 horses. Piling on 120 more is like deep-frying bacon in pork fat.

With the six-speed manual, itís difficult to launch the GT without roasting enough rubber to set off neighborhood smoke alarms. Shifts into second gear provoke another loud bark from the rear tires. Pushing the 7,000-rpm redline in higher gears requires acres of open highway.

The carís least expected quality is a nearly optimal trade-off between aggressive handling and a comfortable ride, both of which came in handy on the twisty, pockmarked Pasadena Freeway (recently renamed the Arroyo Seco Parkway).

The GT has its issues. All Mustangs do. Their point has never been perfection, but rather the proper ratio of performance to price. The car can be a handful to drive in town, and feels a tad too big and heavy. Its center console is awkwardly angled up toward the back seat, making manual shifting an elbow-bumping affair.

Proper flogging of the GT also exposes a drawback to the whole í60s motif. The retro thing extends to the tall, skinny numbers on the circular analog speedometer. Theyíre cool but hard to read, especially in the split second you have to look down, past your white knuckles, as the horizon starts to blur.

The GT dispenses with zero to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds on its way to a 12.7-second quarter mile, according to Motor Trend. If you want something just a hair faster, plunk down $190,000 on an Aston Martin DB9.

Our loaded test car came to $40,255, a bit high for the quintessential affordable fast car. But GTs start at $30,750, and the V-6 base model ó with a more-than-respectable 305 horsepower ó brings the price down to $22,200.

The history no doubt weighs heavily on Mustang engineers now holed up in top-secret design sessions, walking the line between traditional and innovation. Whatever emerges will be the product of much pride and many arguments, said Jim Owens, a marketing manager for the Shelby line of ultra-performance Mustangs.

Our advice to Ford: the Mustang is finally back in a good place. Donít screw it up. Donít get any big ideas. Do what you should have done in the 1970s: let the shape of the car change slowly, organically, over many years. Treat it as Porsche treats the 911.

You want to put a tiny turbocharged engine in it? Fine, if you must. Just keep a V-8 option. We need time to process these things. Independent rear suspension? Whatever. Just donít run up the price. Forget traction control ó we know how to drive. Donít over-worry about fuel economy. And whatever you do, keep it rear-wheel drive ó forever.

Itís a Mustang. Let it be what it is. Itís been 50 years now. Itís our car, not yours.